CHURCH LIFE
The coronavirus pandemic is an unprecedented opportunity to love our neighbours as ourselves, says Dr Russell Rook, chair of YourNeighbour.org and partner at the Good Faith Partnership.
AN UNPRECEDENTED
OPPORTUNITY
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week is a long time on Zoom. At the Good Faith Partnership we help leaders to respond to complex problems. Towards the end of March, we commenced a series of video conferences with church leaders and government officials about the effects of COVID-19 on our communities. We have since talked with hundreds of ministers and, with the support of denominations, organisations and congregations across the UK, have now launched YourNeighbour.org. This national service helps local churches to respond to the challenges and opportunities of COVID-19 in their communities. This pandemic represents the greatest challenge to society in living memory. While not all of us will catch the virus, none of us will be immune to its effects. For churches, agonising decisions abound. How do we broadcast services, cope with restrictions on communion, survive without offerings, decide whether to furlough staff, support those in need, care for those at the end of life, or conduct weddings and funerals? There is little in church life that is unaffected. That said, the church leaders we have spoken to are not merely focused upon survival. For most, the months ahead present many challenges and unprecedented opportunity. Opportunities to befriend the lonely, care practically, pray powerfully, volunteer locally and serve our communities. Opportunities to connect with those who have long lost contact, or maybe never known the local church. Above all, an opportunity to prove Jesus right, when He
The months ahead present many challenges and unprecedented opportunity.
declares that His followers are the “light of the world!” None of this should surprise. We have been this way before. In the first century, when life threatening epidemics were commonplace, members of the early church chose to stay in the cities and tend to the suffering, rather than following the crowd and escaping to the country. In the 17th century, two ministers in Eyam, Derbyshire – William Mompesson and Thomas Stanley – led their village through the Great Plague. They ministered to victims, limited the spread of the disease, and locked down their own village to protect their neighbours. While less than 25 per cent of the villagers survived, their actions saved thousands of lives. During the outbreak of Spanish Flu in America in 1918, pentecostal pastors closed their meetings to prevent further infections while risking their own lives to minister to the sick and the dying. While unprecedented in our own lifetimes, the church has faced these challenges before. And so it now falls to us to demonstrate God’s love in the time of coronavirus. This is where YourNeighbour.org comes in. Following many days of video
conferencing, we have brought together an expert team to help churches navigate the challenges and opportunities of COVID-19. The YourNeighbour.org team is here to help churches shine a light in their communities. YourNeighbour.org provides three vital services. Firstly, our website provides daily news and updates, testimonies from local churches and a host of ideas and resources. All of this with the backup of a specialist team on hand to lend support to leaders. Secondly, YourNeighbour.org provides a national portal and telephone helpline where individuals in need can ask for help, or be referred by a friend or loved-one. Our team then connects these individuals with local churches in their neighbourhood. Thirdly, YourNeighbour.org will broker ongoing opportunities for churches, government and statutory authorities to work together. If we can help you in any way, simply register at our website. In times more challenging than these, Martin Luther wrote to fellow pastors caring for victims of the bubonic plague in Wittenberg. In 1527, Luther wrote, “No one should dare leave his neighbour unless there are others who will take care of the sick in their stead… we are bound to each other in such a way that no one may forsake the other in his distress but is obliged to assist him as he himself would like to be helped.” Through the best and worst of times, the purpose of God’s people remains same. We exist to love God with all our heart, mind and strength, and to love our neighbours as ourselves. The days ahead may give us more opportunity to do that than ever we hoped or imagined. MAY / JUN 2020 27
